GPU "Limit" for Athlon 64 X2 7750 BE

[mrcaffeinex]

I know that at some point the CPU will become the limiting factor for improved gaming performance given a specific GPU. My question is what video card is the "limit" (i.e. more powerful cards provide no significant performance boost) for this CPU?

I have an old Athlon 64 X2 4800+ and if I remember correctly, anything above a nVidia 9800/250 was going to be limited by the CPU.

The 7750BE system currently is running on an integrated nVidia 6150, but it does have a PCIe x16 slot available. I am trying to find a cheap(ish) way to have it as a backup gaming rig for when my main computer is busy, while also extending the life of a computer that has been solid for me, but is getting a bit dated.

-MrCaffeineX

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

I'd put a gtx 480 or 570 in it if it was mine.

 

[OVerLoRDI]

I'd put a gtx 480 or 570 in it if it was mine.

For serious? Making a $300+ power thirsty recommendation without even asking what resolution he plays at or what PSU you he has.

So OP, what resolution is your monitor and what PSU are we working with here?

Your CPU is not exactly stellar, but you can find a solid card, depending on your res and psu.

 

[Maximilian]

I would guess something like a 5750 or less would be a decent match.

 

[cusideabelincoln]

I would guess something like a 5750 or less would be a decent match.

Basically this. Don't go over a 6850 or GTX 460. Unless you run a super high resolution.

The 7750 is roughly 25% faster than a 4800+, so you can use this as a reference. If you feel comfortable pairing a GTS 250 with a 4800+, then you could get by by with a 25% faster video card (roughly a GTX 460 SE) with the 7750BE.

It really depends on the games, the resolution, and the AA you use.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

For serious? Making a $300+ power thirsty recommendation without even asking what resolution he plays at or what PSU you he has.

So OP, what resolution is your monitor and what PSU are we working with here?

Your CPU is not exactly stellar, but you can find a solid card, depending on your res and psu.

Yeah I just assume everyone has a 700w power supply, 1080p min screen, full tower case. I forget this is the minority.

 

[mrcaffeinex]

PSU is a Seasonic S12II 520W.

Resolution will be no higher than 1680x1050.

As far as the 570 is concerned...I did consider buying one for my main PC and dropping the 460 into the 7750BE system, but I'm thinking the sub-$200 market probably has some worthwhile options.

-MrCaffeineX

 

[happy medium]

The gts250/4850/5750 are all in the same boat.
At your resolution you will be gpu limited with these cards with alot of games.

Here is a review with your cpu and a 4850, its clearly gpu limited.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/athlon7750/3.htm

Here is another one with a 4870...
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/athlon-x2-7750_6.html#sect0

You should overclock your cpu to 3.0 (it will easily do it) and use the gtx460 in the other machine like you said. As long as the games are for dual core cpu's you will be fine.
Save the 6 or so games that require a quad core for your other machine.

Edit: if you wanna go the cheaper route, just grab a new 5770 or used gtx260/4870. They make a good backup card for your cpu.

 

[Skurge]

The gts250/4850/5750 are all in the same boat.
At your resolution you will be gpu limited with these cards with alot of games.

Here is a review with your cpu and a 4850, its clearly gpu limited.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/athlon7750/3.htm

Here is another one with a 4870...
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/athlon-x2-7750_6.html#sect0

You should overclock your cpu to 3.0 (it will easily do it) and use the gtx460 in the other machine like you said. As long as the games are for dual core cpu's you will be fine.
Save the 6 or so games that require a quad core for your other machine.

Edit: if you wanna go the cheaper route, just grab a new 5770 or used gtx260/4870. They make a good backup card for your cpu.

There are more games that need a quad core than you think. Just put the 460 in the 2nd machine if you are already planning on getting a replacement for the 460 atleast you know you wont be GPU bottlenecked in any games and you can turn everything up.

 

[maniac5999]

I had a 7750 @ 3.1 before I bought my current 940. The only time that I felt CPU limited was in Civ5. (and I run @ 1080p) I'd say that a 460 or 6850 would be a great choice.

 

[mrcaffeinex]

Thank you for the replies. I think I am going to go with the 460. The 6850 is tempting, but I've always had good luck with nVidia cards and I could SLI the pair of them later. The 570 is just a bit too far out of the budget at the moment.

 

[RavenSEAL]

GTX460/HD6850.

These cards are very rarely bottlenecked by a CPU, you'd honestly have to be running something under 2GHz dual core to be meaningfully bottlenecked to the point that it's not worth the money.

 

[Skurge]

Thank you for the replies. I think I am going to go with the 460. The 6850 is tempting, but I've always had good luck with nVidia cards and I could SLI the pair of them later. The 570 is just a bit too far out of the budget at the moment.

I don't think you can SLI on that mobo.

 

[mrcaffeinex]

True.

I will probably be building something new before the end of the year (leaning toward Intel this time around) and the pair of 460s in SLI should still be viable.

The 7750 system is really just a temporary solution until I've had a chance to review the options available later this year and make my final decisions on that build. The fact that I can likely reuse parts going forward helps though.

In the meantime I will be able to do some casual gaming while my wife is using the other computer (if you need more clarification on that last sentence, you're not married ).

 

[Makaveli]

On my pervious rig which was an Opteron 170 @ 2.6 with a 3870 it was fine but when I upgraded to a 4890 the cpu bottleneck started to kick in. I wouldn't go with a 460 unless you plan on upgrading the rest of the rig soon.

 

[happy medium]

On my pervious rig which was an Opteron 170 @ 2.6 with a 3870 it was fine but when I upgraded to a 4890 the cpu bottleneck started to kick in. I wouldn't go with a 460 unless you plan on upgrading the rest of the rig soon.

7750 be @ stock = a opteron 170 @ 3.0.
The 7750 also overclocks to 3.1 /3.3 in most cases, which would be a opteron @ 3.6 or so.
He should be fine.

 

[tincart]

I had my 4890 in a 7850 system @ 3.1 before I went to a Phenom II 955 @ 3.8. So far as I could tell, the GPU was not really bottlenecked by the CPU in most situations (I play mostly FPS games). Anything at around 4890 performance should be fine. I would say 5770.

 

[Face2Face]

By a cheap used card -- 4870 1gb or GTX 260

OR GTS 450 --5770 -- or a GTX 460 768 would fit the bill.

My X2 240e is faster then a 7750 be and -- SC2 --GTA4 and COD BO give this little CPU Hell.

 

[tincart]

It's also worth pointing out that the 7750's aren't terrible for overclocking. They do run a bit hot so with an affordable third-party cooler (I used a Freezer 64 on the 7850) you can really push the clocks. The 7850 was stable at 3.3 but I settled on 3.1 as the sweet spot for temp and fan noise under load.